This invention is an improvement upon the apparatus disclosed and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,535,734, issued to Henry M. Ross on Oct. 27, 1970, for FLUID-OPERATED, FORCE-LIMITED APPARATUS FOR TENDERIZING MEAT.
Before the introduction of the apparatus patented by the applicant in U.S. Pat. No. 3,535,734, the mechanical treatment of meat with tough fibers was accomplished by crushing and tearing the fibers manually with hammers or cutting the fibers with rigidly-mounted knives or spring-biased spikes. This treatment was suitable only for thin, boneless cuts. The patented apparatus developed by the applicant made it possible to utilize a true force-limited insertion into the meat of cutting elements, thereby allowing bone-in treatment of large, intermediate cuts of meat prior to the final butchering cuts. While applicant's patented apparatus has met with great commercial success, the fluid pressure system required for operation caused the device to be somewhat complex and expensive in construction and repair.